By Kelly Leavitt

Let’s play a game. Write down every stereotype you have about Quinnipiac sororities. Did any of these words come up? Snotty. Self-centered. Ditzy. Cliquey. Now, I don’t hold this against you. I’ve seen my share of Lifetime movies. I think Anna Faris is hilarious in The House Bunny and I can confidently quote Legally Blonde from beginning to end (In fact, I often use legal jargon in everyday life…). But these movies, as entertaining as they are, are meant for just that: entertainment.

A two-hour film chronicling ‘Teddy Bear Teas’ with the Girl Scouts, fundraisers against domestic violence, or two-hand touch football games for a good cause is much less dramatic than their widely popularized paddle-whipping, roofalin-laced, morally questionable and bedazzled counterparts. And while these films serve their ultimate purpose, the end result is a cruel parody and a pigeonhole of sorority women that rings wholly untrue.

I am a sorority woman. But what does that mean? For me, it means that I joined a group of girls who share my same values. People join people, and I joined a group of girls that best complimented who I am. I pledged a feeling, intangible as it is, that reminds me of my personal tenants and pushes me to be the best version of myself. I have sisters that come from across the world, across the quad and across diverse backgrounds and experiences. These “sisters” I may have never met had it not been for my joining a sorority.

I am a Kappa Delta. I am also a senior who is nervous to enter the real world, an e-board member of American Marketing Association, a messy roommate and a never-recovering chocolate addict. My sorority is part of who I am, but it isn’t the only thing I am.

So many women in Greek life break the stereotype every day. It is in the selfless act of tutoring a sister that disproves the theory that sorority women are ditzy and self-centered. It’s the attending of campus events a friend on a sports team or in another organization that reveals how sorority women have friends outside their Greek “clique” and value other friendships as well. The stereotype is challenged by one of my sisters who works two jobs on the weekends to pay her own dues and tuition because education and this sorority mean so much to her.

Sororities would be nothing without the women who comprise them, encompass their values and personify them. Each sorority is unique, yes, but each has the ultimate goal of a lifelong sisterhood. So, no, a sorority isn’t a place that will forget you after you graduate that cares only about your looks, and financial standing putting your wardrobe before your personality.

Instead, a sorority is a home away from home; a throng of close friends that help you hang posters and go door to door with you when you run for class president. They’re also there to take you out for fro-yo and watch Nicholas Sparks movies when you lose.

Beyond the spirited and peppy cheers, beneath the Lily Pulitzer letters, and a deep appreciation for the Greek alphabet lay deeply driven, involved, selfless individuals. The ladies who provide “evidentiary support” to the notion those stereotypes only barely scratch the surface of who someone is, if truthful at all.

So next time you see a sorority woman, try not to think of the movies you’ve seen about them, and think about what you’ve actually seen them do in real life; their philanthropy events and silly sisterhood events. I promise if you do, you won’t regret it. “Snaps” for being open minded about QU Sororities!  (I warned you about my Legally Blonde quoting).